Bennett Through the Year

What use are all my monthly photos if I don't post them all in a progression?  

So here he is Bennett as he grew from little nugget to big boy this past year.

We sure love this little guy.  It's a good thing his 12 months are up, because it is impossible to take a photo of him flat on the ground anymore!

First Day of School

School has started!

Orelia is attending her third year of school at Preschool Family in Palo Alto.  She just makes the cutoff for 3's class and gets to attend school three days a week now.

Mommy goes with her one of the three days, which seems to always make her happy (yet she certainly isn't glued by my side when I am there).

Orelia, of course, chose her most formal attire to wear to school, but luckily it was just an inexpensive outfit that happens to be covered in sequins.

 She was so excited to be back at school and check out all her old favorite haunts.

 Turns out the monkey bars are still fun to hang from.

Art is still a big draw for her at school (and home), and she never shies away from a mess.

After a summer apart from all the costumes she used last year, she was happy to be reunited with them again.

While she saw her best friend all summer, it was still extra fun for the girls to be together again at school.  Everything is better with a friend by your side.

A Big Yellow Cake

This year was our first birthday party we didn't host in our backyard.

It was only our third birthday party, so it only took me three years to learn how much easier it is to host a gaggle of children somewhere that isn't your own property.

People are paid to help you set up, and most importantly clean up.

An age-appropriate location means the fun is already there and doesn't need to be planned for.

 Luckily this place (U-Me) was great for running and jumping and playing, but was still party-dress-feasible.

 Orelia shares an August birthday with one of her best friends and Bennett has a September birthday.  Since the party was going to happen anyway, we figured might as well have all the kids celebrate together!

 As far as I can tell, the most important aspect of a birthday party to a three-year-old is the cake.  So we decided might as well make it a big one.

 Bennett was not the least bit interested in his smash cake, but luckily his sister was around to help.

 The grass is always greener, I suppose.

 Bennett didn't hate it, which is about as much as I could hope for a first birthday party.

 He really enjoyed the mirrors in the cake room.

He's either a narcissist or thinks the other baby is very fun!

Orelia had an absolute blast, which is exactly what I was hoping for.

She has always loved U-Me - it has dress-up, a trampoline, a slide, baby dolls, a pretend grocery store, and pretty much everything a three-year-old would enjoy.

The fact that she got to go to one of her favorite places surrounded by her friends and family made it the perfect day.

 And luckily a three-year-old (or at least this one) has no qualms about sharing her party with her baby brother or best friend.  As long as they didn't take her share of cake she was excited by the idea.

The party was a month ago, and I think Orelia is already eager to have another birthday roll around.

 Especially if there is cake involved.

Tiny Dancer

Over the summer Orelia took a weekly dance class and also participated in her first ever camp - a dance camp!

Our tiny dancer is mostly interested in the friendship part of dancing and less into following the instructions and doing particular moves.

She did very much like the movements with flare from her Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy performance.  Much more fun than plies.

Her dance camp was much more laid back than the weekly ballet class and the performance at the end of the week had them showing us some of their typical activities.

They danced out the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, which was quite comical.

And I remember lots of running back and forth and jumping.

I don't foresee a career in dance, but for now she's having fun and can't wait to start classes again in October.  One of the joys of having a little girl is dressing her in a leotard and ballet slippers, and I plan to appreciate every minute!